I've got a very eclectic resume: 5-7 years of experience in several different fields at once, because I have had multiple simultaneous jobs. Now I'm looking for a new gig, and I think I have a lot to offer, but I'm not sure how to market the breadth of my skills. [more inside]
posted by overeducated_alligator
on Jun 1, 2013 -
4 answers

I've been in a relationship with a guy for 6 months. When one of us is traveling, I prefer to send lots of text messages and emails throughout the day, and I want to get messages back. He dislikes written communication and would prefer to have rare, brief phone calls and just wait until we see each other in-person again. What can I do, which won't result in frustration for one of us? [more inside]
posted by cheesecake
on May 28, 2013 -
28 answers

I'm in a new relationship, long distance. We skype almost daily. Often, mid-convo, I can tell his attention is on something else. Turns out he's flipping through Reddit. This makes me feel hurt, b/c he's not listening to me. When I suggest we end the convo and talk the next day, he says, "No, no! I'm done! I'm done!" Then I feel like a nagging mom, policing his behavior. What should I do? [more inside]
posted by enzymatic
on May 24, 2013 -
46 answers

Help me be assertive/direct without being hostile/aggressive. Also, help me muddle through some other communication issues. Finally: can a person be nice to others without being taken advantage of? [more inside]
posted by DayTripper
on May 23, 2013 -
23 answers

My best friend is dating a new guy and is currently in the "floating in the clouds" stage. He's all that she talks about, texts me about, emails me about, mentions, quotes, you name it. I'm happy for her, but I am quickly reaching "who cares" stage. She does this with everyone she dates, but this guy might become permanent, so I'm not brushing it off as "just wait until this passes". How can I politely tell her that we need to have conversations about OTHER THINGS? She can be very sensitive, and I don't want her to feel that I am not interested in the relationship or not happy for her. More details inside. [more inside]
posted by ElectricGoat
on Apr 28, 2013 -
26 answers

Do men and women really have distinctly different communication styles.
For those of you who are in healthy relationships (romantic love or platonic), is there a wedge in communication that you constantly have to go against your natural instincts and fine-tune in a way that you don't have to with same-sex friends?
Is the stereotype true, do women need to 'talk it out' and men need to 'go to their cave'? Can women really improve the relationship by NOT talking about it and can men really improve the relationship by practicing reflective listening? Is there really a pre-programmed way to communicate based on your gender?
Something in this widely-spread viewpoint really rubs me the wrong way, and I'm not sure if the cultural/societal views(at least in my area) regarding men/women relationships are in fact, entirely valid and its just my own personal issues that need work.
What are your experiences?
posted by tenaciousmoon
on Apr 17, 2013 -
23 answers

We currently have a number of different list serves, google groups, yahoo groups, and meetup groups in our town, all involving family activities and community events. The different groups cover different neighborhoods, and there is a lot of overlap. I am wondering if there is some kind of service or tool that could be an giant umbrella for all of our groups, with subgroups according to interest, age of kids, neighborhoods, schools etc. [more inside]
posted by alball
on Apr 15, 2013 -
3 answers

I have been dating my boyfriend for 10 months. At 9 months he finally said he loved me, but I don't know if I really feel the love from him. Out of nowhere I'm having strong doubts. What should I do about them? Is this normal? [more inside]
posted by Chelsaroo650
on Apr 9, 2013 -
50 answers

Professional communicators of Metafilter: Please give me your tips for handling subject matter experts who write poorly, but don't know it. When a colleague is adamant that their disorganised writing and grammatical errors Must Not Be Changed, how do you respond? [more inside]
posted by embrangled
on Mar 28, 2013 -
31 answers

I received some feedback recently that I come across as arrogant, condescending, and pretentious. How can I stop coming across this way, externally? How can I get at the root of underlying attitudes, internally? [more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Mar 24, 2013 -
53 answers

I've been married for a few more than 10 years. For most of that time, I did not really listen to my wife or honor her goals and desires for our life together. Starting in 2012, I have made a change in my attitude and actions, and we are communicating and making significant progress in our relationship. If it were just making the current state of affairs good, I think we're on a good track and we'd be ok. My question is: How do I make up for the previous ~10 years? If you want to email: accommodatee@mail.com. Thanks in advance for any advice, here or via email. [more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Mar 20, 2013 -
30 answers

I've heard that men don't like questions. I'm a woman and would like to have better relationships with the men in my life. Give me some examples of ways to rephrase questions into statements, directives or imperatives. [more inside]
posted by geekgirl397
on Mar 15, 2013 -
40 answers

I'm about to enter a second-degree program, and I expect that my small cohort group and I are going to be very different people. I'd like to bridge the gap, but I worry that my weird, assertive, and outspoken tendencies are going to alienate me. Help. [more inside]
posted by sibboleth
on Mar 13, 2013 -
10 answers

I think I'm offending my boss's wife when I suggest alternatives to some of her input that she's been giving on a big project I'm in charge of at work. How can I more effectively respond to her feedback so I don't offend her but also stay true to design standards and artistic integrity? [more inside]
posted by Hello Darling
on Mar 6, 2013 -
13 answers

My 80 year old mother- in- law of 30 years talks non-stop about things I am not interested in----- but the people-pleaser in me keeps listening to her politely and I end up feeling exhausted.
[more inside]
posted by seekingsimplicity
on Mar 5, 2013 -
23 answers

I have to have a relationship talk tonight with a new person in my life. It's going to be stressful but I think it's going to be okay. How do I not cry? I have a tendency to get choked up and cry during certain types of discussions where I feel vulnerable. (It even happens at work, but that's another AskMe.) What do I do? Should I just issue a warning before we talk?
posted by summer sock
on Feb 22, 2013 -
10 answers

My partner is a new psychotherapist and I think his training is getting in the way of how we communicate. Is there some way to make it clear that I'd like him to knock it off, or Is there some other way I ought to be thinking about this? [more inside]
posted by It's a Parasox
on Feb 9, 2013 -
25 answers

This is a question for those of you who are married (or have an SO): When it comes to things like personal correspondence, is there still such a thing as privacy? [more inside]
posted by Telpethoron
on Feb 2, 2013 -
65 answers

MD said he would talk to me about a graduate position opening up this year. Haven't heard anything yet and I do not want to let this one slip through my fingers. How communicative should I be, and by what means? [more inside]
posted by fearnothing
on Jan 28, 2013 -
8 answers

I am in a really amazing relationship after a long, bad one. It is mutually supportive, caring, engaging, and honest—loving, in the best, most positive way. We never fight. This confuses me, and I need some reality-checking and standards for how normal good relationships are supposed to work. [more inside]
posted by sockpuppet yo
on Jan 22, 2013 -
23 answers

I thought he was attracted to me. I'm really attracted to him. Turns out he's just really excited about my creative work. Help me find the words to be honest about the attraction and the fact that I'd like to get past that imbalance so we can do all the collaborations we want to do. [more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Jan 16, 2013 -
19 answers

I feel like I have become completely unwilling to work for people if I don't think highly of them, and I can't decide whether I have justifiably high standards or am being unreasonable. [more inside]
posted by eseuss
on Jan 14, 2013 -
10 answers

Sometimes, people will hurt me - and then get so upset about having done so, that they want me to comfort them. Or else they become so inconsolable that we can’t move forward without talking about their feelings. How do you handle these situations when what you need is time to process your own hurt? [more inside]
posted by Someone Else's Story
on Jan 11, 2013 -
35 answers

Can anybody recommend a book that will teach me how to be assertive without sounding bitchy? Or, maybe it's a self-esteem issue that I'm dealing with. I'd like to communicate better. [more inside]
posted by little_dog_laughing
on Jan 9, 2013 -
11 answers

I broke up with my then-fiancée in September 2012. What is the appropriate amount of contact after a break-up? I've struggled with finding a good balance. Give me some advice for the next go-round. [more inside]
posted by mellosphere
on Jan 8, 2013 -
32 answers

I am traveling to Taiwan for about two weeks very soon. I will be there with about 20 fellow students from my university. Being able to communicate amongst us while about Taipei will be pretty important. What do you recommend to use around the city? Inexpensive and easy would be great. [more inside]
posted by Korou
on Jan 3, 2013 -
4 answers

Help me, I get frustrated and it's not helpful. I want to find a better way to act to relationship communication frustrations. Snowflakes inside [more inside]
posted by couchdive
on Dec 12, 2012 -
13 answers

This is going to seem like a very strange question, but how do you know what you want when you don’t know what you can have? Especially when other people are involved, trying to speculate on an “anything’s possible” basis seems like pointless daydreaming to me. I’m trying to work out whether I’m approaching this differently to other people, because their questions make no sense to me and my answers make no sense to them! [more inside]
posted by Someone Else's Story
on Nov 30, 2012 -
35 answers

I think I've made a huge mistake. I'm newly married - only 3 months, but my husband is showing me facets of his personality that do not sit well with me. He seems to have anger issues. Nothing physical, but I need help making sense of it all, and I can't talk to him without him getting extremely defensive. [more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Nov 21, 2012 -
83 answers

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